The German economic affairs and energy ministry has come up with what it calls a “Lightweight Construction Initiative” as an element for innovation and sustainability. This includes significant steel industry participation.
“Lightweight construction technologies are crucial for the sustainable transformation of the mobility sector and for the expansion of renewable energies,” the ministry says in a statement.
Lightweight construction leads to lower costs and improved functionalities through the use of less material, the ministry continues. Lower mass also means that less energy is consumed by the use of lightweight product and CO2 emissions are reduced, it adds.
The strategy is based on an extensive consultation process with more than 350 representatives from business and science. The ministry “…is providing an important impetus for Germany as a location for innovation,” a spokesman for steel federation WV Stahl comments to Kallanish. The steel industry in Germany has been extensively involved in the process of the “Lightweight Construction Initiative” and will also accompany the further steps of implementation, he notes.
The funding programmes mentioned in the context of the initiative are important for providing targeted support to companies in research activities in this field, he adds. The ministry plans packages of measures for R&D into resource-efficient lightweight construction, for expanding digital infrastructures and for lightweight construction as an enabler for the energy transition, among other things.
